Jean-Claude Decaux

Jean-Claude Decaux (15 September 1937 – 27 May 2016)[1] was a French entrepreneur who earned his fortune in advertising.[2][3] He was the founder and honorary chair of the advertising firm JCDecaux, which is now run by his sons, Jean-François Decaux and Jean-Charles Decaux.[2][3]

Jean-Claude Decaux
Born(1937-09-15)15 September 1937
Beauvais, France
Died27 May 2016(2016-05-27) (aged 78)
NationalityFrench
OccupationFounder and CEO, JCDecaux
Net worth$6.2 billion
Children3

Personal life

Jean-Claude Decaux was the son of a shoe salesman in Beauvais, France.[4]

He was married with three children and lived in Paris.[5]

His death was announced on 27 May 2016.[6][7]

Career

At the age of 18, inspired by an argument with his father over the family shoe store's window display, Jean-Claude started a business creating billboards along French roadways.[4] In 1963, legislation in France placed restrictions on billboard use which forced Decaux out of business.[8] He founded JCDecaux in 1964.[9] He made a deal with the city of Lyon, proposing that he would build bus shelters and keep them clean in exchange for advertising space there. The company quickly expanded to other cities.[10]

In 1980, Decaux personally designed the Sanisette public toilet, a self-cleaning public toilet, as a replacement for the pissoirs of Paris.[4][11]

In January 2015, according to Forbes, he had a net worth of $6.2 billion.[5]

See also

References


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